Technology and Aging

by STEPHANIE ERICKSON
Contributor

How many times a day do you observe someone on their cell phone, scrolling through emails or setting a date in their calendar?

Or how about taking a picture, asking Siri a question, or looking for directions? Have you ever seen a couple or family in a restaurant not talking to each other and focused on their phones instead? Or someone using his or her phone to avoid asking a stranger for directions or doing a google search to learn about a business instead of just calling?

I appreciate technology, I really do and I, like most, am quite dependent on it to organize my personal and work life. But do we use technology to enhance our life or to replace it? Is technology getting in the way of our relationships with others? When it comes to providing care and support for another person, is technology helping us manage things in a way to preserve autonomy? This week’s guest on Caregivers’ Circle, David Dring, Executive Director of Self-Help Innovations, discusses the benefits and pitfalls of technological advances related to aging.

Stephanie Erickson is a clinical social worker with over 20 years of experience as a geriatric social worker. Her primary area of practice focuses on…

Stephanie Erickson is a clinical social worker with over 20 years of experience as a geriatric social worker. Her primary area of practice focuses on Dementia and decision-making capacity. She works with seniors living autonomously, in care facilities, in acute care at the hospital, and who are living with family. Stephanie also provides training and consultation to families, the Alzheimer’s Society, community groups, financial and legal institutions and at professional conferences. She hosts her own weekly podcast called Caregivers’ Circle. She founded Erickson Resource Group which offers holistic services to seniors and their families. Check out her free guide to initiating conversations with aging relatives.